Herein, a transmission in particular designates a multi-speed transmission, with which a multitude of gears, thus transmission ratio relationships between a drive shaft and the output shaft, are shiftable by shifting elements, preferably automatically. Here, the shifting elements comprise, for example, clutches or brakes. Such transmissions are primarily used in automotive applications, in order to adjust the rotational speed and torque output characteristics of the drive unit to the driving resistance of the vehicle in a suitable manner.
Patent application DE 101 21 634 A1 of the applicant discloses a manual transmission in group design with a coaxially arranged drive shaft and output shaft, which features a layshaft and multiple pairs of gear wheels distributed on the shafts, which are shiftable by clutches. Between an idler gear mounted on the end of the drive shaft and an idler gear mounted on the beginning of the output shaft, a shifting device is provided across the area on which the shafts are connected to each other. The shifting device firmly connects, in a first shifting position, the idler gear to the output shaft and, in a second shifting position, the idler gear to the drive shaft.